


What Friends Do

by Waitlist



Category: Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: M/M, Prom Night, Souda's pink transformation, Terrible Dancing, awkward teenagers, pretty fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-25
Updated: 2014-06-25
Packaged: 2018-02-06 03:05:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1841956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Waitlist/pseuds/Waitlist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They're finished at high school, and college is just around the corner. The only thing standing in the way of Souda and Hinata's summer holidays is prom, and Souda has something new in mind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What Friends Do

"Hey, Souda!" Hinata called as he approached his best friend.

They had both just left the examination hall for the last time ever at high school. Hinata was so sure he’d passed, and so this was his last exam until college, relief dancing in his heart. But when Souda turned to him, his face told a different story. The boy was chewing hard on his bottom lip and absently pulling on his beanie; both nervous habits that Hinata noticed often. Souda was also very sensitive to insults and what people thought of him, which would’ve been endearing if it wasn’t slightly annoying. Hinata would never tell him that though.

"What’s up, man? It’s our last day at this dump!" He tried to lighten his mood, and relax whatever was bothering him.

In response, Souda stared at Hinata momentarily with his almost-black eyes, then pulled his beanie to cover his entire face with a groan.

Hinata sighed, “Is it the exam? How bad did it go?”

"It went fine," Souda’s muffled grumble came from behind the hat. Hinata frowned.

"Then it’s something else?" The other boy nodded, just the ends of his dark hair visible underneath the beanie.

"You can tell me. Is it one of these bastards?" Hinata jerked his thumb at the other classmates gathering behind them.

When Souda only groaned again, Hinata put a hand on his arm that was keeping the hat over his face. “Come on, you’re gonna break your glasses.”

Reluctantly, he released the beanie and looked down at Hinata like he might cry.

"Hiyoko called me a stupid shark three times, and Akane called me four-eyes. All in the space of ten minutes!"

"Don’t listen to them," Hinata assured him as per usual, "Their opinions don’t matter."

"And Sonia hasn’t looked at me once since Tanaka arrived! Can you believe that guy?"

He rolled his eyes, “Yeah, what a jerk.”

"And what if I didn’t pass? What if I don’t get into college, then I’ll never get to see you again, Hinata, and I’ll be forced to redo a whole year at high school—"

"Relax," Hinata cut him off, "You did great. I know because you’re smart, and they didn’t give us mechanical pencils this time."

"I guess it could’ve been worse…"

"And you don’t have to look at anyone from school for a month’s holiday."

"I’ll come and visit you, Hinata. Maybe the cafe where Sonia does her summer job." Instead of asking him how he already knew she had a summer job, Hinata was glad that he started to smile.

Neither of them had noticed Komaeda approach until he was stood between the two boys. Souda’s smile fell away when he saw Komaeda, making Hinata resent his decision to intrude on their conversation with a glare.

"Hey Hinata, Souda. How was the test?" Komaeda said in his slightly bored-sounding voice.

"It was alright," Souda shrugged, not so disturbed by his presence, "I didn’t know you took physics?"

"I don’t," the boy smiled, "I just wanted to see everyone here together once more before prom."

It was Hinata’s turn to groan at the mention of prom. Both Souda and Nanami had been urging him to go along with them since it was brought up. Despite everyone else’s excitement, he wasn’t so happy about buying a suit, wearing it to stand around, listen to awful music and drink awful punch, then leave whilst avoiding drunk ex-classmates. However, Nanami hatched an evil scheme to buy Hinata’s ticket for him, then use his guilty gratitude to get her money back. Which worked perfectly, of course.

Souda grinned, “Me, Hinata and Chiaki are going! Are you?”

"I will, if it’s not too late to buy tickets."

"It’s still a couple weeks away, so they should be on sale," Hinata silently cursed Souda for encouraging Komaeda.

"Hey Souda," Hinata chose to join in, "We should probably start walking home now."

"Right," Komaeda said with a wave, "I’ll see you guys there, okay?"

When they were a suitable distance away, Hinata sighed, “I’m glad he’s not coming to our college.”

"Well, he said he still doesn’t know which one he’s going to," Souda pointed out.

"What are the chances that Hope’s Peak will accept him now?"

The two walked for a while longer, chatting and laughing and enjoying the freedom of no more high school forever. They agreed to arrange prom meeting times with Nanami by text over the next week, and talked about their outfits (mostly Souda speaking) and their arrival vehicle (also entirely Souda). Eventually, they said goodbye and parted ways where Hinata had to turn left down his road.

In spite of himself and earlier thoughts, he was looking forward to the night of prom.

 

* * *

 

One week before prom, on a late afternoon of doing nothing, Hinata’s phone buzzed with the sound of a text. When he pulled it out of his pocket, Souda’s name popped up on the screen.

>5:46pm “do u think people would like me better if i looked diffrent??”

Sighing, Hinata prepared to comfort his anxious friend for a little while. At least it wasn’t all in caps, as he sometimes typed.

<5:47pm “People would like you however you look.”

>5:47pm “yeah but would they like me better?”

<5:48pm “You only need friends who like you for you.”

>5:50pm “college can be a fresh start tho. lots of new people and new girls!!”  
>5:50pm “i need to make a good impression”

<5:51pm “If you wanna do something different then you can, but dont worry too much.”

For now, Souda seemed satisfied with what Hinata had said. Only half hour later he recieved another message.

>7:25pm “what if i changed everything tho?”

<7:25pm “Everything, like what?”

>7:26pm “like hair colour, glasses, clothes, style and everything”

<7:27pm “If it makes you feel better, but dont do it for anyone else.”

>7:27pm “just for me and my new mechanics course”

<7:28pm “As long as youre sure.”

No more messages came until much later; after Hinata had eaten, played some video games until 11, then gone to bed.

>11:59pm “what would u say if i died my hair pink?”

Instead of replying, he brushed it off as a joke and went back to sleep. Only a slight nagging in the back of his mind worried him about Souda’s honest impulsiveness.

 

* * *

 

There was nothing special about how Hinata dressed on the night; green tie on a white shirt and black blazer, a little more gel is his hair than usual. He had long-since stopped trying to flatten the insistent flick of hair on his head, instead embracing it by spraying product around the base. His parents told him he looked smart and handsome, but that he should be home by 10. With a last snap of their camera, he was released into the night.

It took just over 3 minutes for Hinata to text Nanami and have her car arrive on his street. She was the only one who had passed her drivers test so far in their group of friends, and she always seemed to compare it to playing a game with lots of controls.

"Get in, Hajime, we’ve got a shark to catch," she said to him through the open car window. Hinata could see she had a pretty violet dress, a few shades darker than her hair, which was adorned with sparkly clips. He found himself hoping he would get a chance to dance with her later on.

"He’s not already here?" He asked, getting in the passenger seat and glancing around the car.

"Nope," She pulled the Toyota out of its spot, "He texted me earlier saying that he might be a bit late."

"Oh right…," Hinata checked his empty phone, "He didn’t text me."

They rounded a roundabout and headed towards Souda’s road, “That reminds me. There’s something I’m not supposed to tell you… but I forgot it,” Nanami said dejectedly.

"Ah, well I guess that’s a good thing?" Hinata didn’t notice his leg start to shake due to anticipation or nerves. When they arrived outside his house, and Nanami’s horn provoked no response, Hinata decided to go out there. Souda was probably just worried about his appearance, as he had been the week before.

He knocked once, twice, then the door slowly opened. At first, Hinata thought he’d come to the wrong house. The distressed boy in front of him could’ve been a model for a pop magazine. Some long moments passed, then Hinata opened his mouth.

"Souda, we’ve gotta…"

His hair and eyes were the first noticeable features. They both now sported a hot pink colour, with no glasses and no beanie to cover them. His eyes looked wider and brighter, despite the fearful glint of uncertainty. His hair spiked upwards and down to brush his shoulders, and Hinata spotted a thin braid beside his ear. When he drank in the pinkness, Hinata glanced over Souda’s clothing. The blazer was a dark mahogany wood colour to match the pants, his shirt was pastel yellow, and his bowtie was pinker than Hinata’s flushed cheeks.

Only when he saw tears building in Souda’s eyes, did he let the smile flourish on his face.

"Wow, Souda."

"It’s awful, isn’t it? A horrible colour, I’ve ruined everything!" The fidgety boy’s habit kicked in, and he reached up to his head to clutch a non-exsistent hat. His friend, though, was thinking something completely different, and put a comforting hand on his arm.

"No, I mean, _wow_ , Souda.”

Hinata’s heart was racing furiously, and he wanted to hit himself for what he’d just said. Now he could never look Souda in the eye again. But wasn’t that his job as Souda’s friend? If anything, he needed a great confidence boost, even at the expense of Hinata’s awkward blurting compliments. Yeah, he could tell Souda just how good he looked, because it was going to help him fly through prom with a smile. And Souda was already grinning when Hinata finally looked back up.

"You really think so? It’s not a disaster?"

"Nowhere close. I didn’t know pink would be your colour, man, but pink is your colour," At that, Souda almost floated out of the door.

"Do you think Sonia will like it?"

"Will Sonia like it? Souda, you could have any girl in the whole school," The words sounded strange in his mouth, especially when he added as an afterthought, "You could have any  _guy_  in the whole school if you wanted to.”

Now there was a different kind of fluttering in Hinata’s heart when Souda’s nerves had transformed into excitement, and the newfound confidence only added to his look.

"Oh, Hinata!" Nanami said as they both got into the car, "I remembered what I wasn’t supposed to tell you."

"You mean, you knew?"

"Come on, Hinata," Souda clapped him on the shoulder from the back seat, "You know I gotta get a girl’s opinion first."

"The doors open in five minutes, let’s go!" Nanami laughed and stepped on the pedal, as Hinata tried subtly to cool the heat from his face.

 

* * *

 

"Is that Kazuichi Souda?"

"Did he even go to our school?"

"Is that Hajime Hinata’s date?"

"Did he do that on purpose?"

For once in his life, Hinata felt more obtrusive, anxious and vulnerable than Souda did. None of the whispering comments seemed to reach his ears, and nothing slowed down his wide smile. Hinata felt as if he was shielding them from his suddenly-popular friend, absorbing any insecurities he once had. While he didn’t fully appreciate the role, it was better him than Souda, right?

About an hour into the celebrations, Nanami pulled Hinata aside, who jumped shaking at the contact.

"Are you okay, Hajime?"

"Me? Yeah, I’m fine…," His uneasy voice gave away everything.

"You’ve been following Souda around like a lost puppy all night," She spoke the facts straight to him, "He’s absolutely fine on his own."

"But, I just…he might…," Hinata struggled to come up with a good reason. Now that he thought about it, Souda had been mostly enjoying the company of people like Akane, Kuzuryuu and Ibuki, speaking to Hinata when they all went to get drinks. Even Sonia had come over to compliment his style.

"I know you’re used to protecting him, or whatever it is, but this new look has done him a lot of good."

"What if he leaves us?" Hinata’s voice was nearly completely drowned by the thumping music.

Nanami just rolled her eyes and hinted at a smile, “Listen to yourself, Hajime,” She pulled him into a comforting hug, “He may be a cool kid tonight, but he’s still a big dummy who needs your shoulder to lean on.”

She was right, as usual, and she gave him one last pat on the shoulder before going back to her dance spot with Tsumiki. Hinata sighed. Some fresh air and some fresh punch would do him good about now, he thought.

He held on tightly to the glass as he stared at the dark cloudy sky. There were no stars visible, though the shine of the moon could be seen behind the clouds. A couple of other people gathered to enjoy the quiet of outside, so Hinata let the breeze calm his unnerved spirits. With the help of a different kind of spirits, of course. He vaguely recognised the voices of Tanaka and Sonia behind him, so at least Souda wasn’t bothered by the sight of them together. He’d been dancing rather happily with Ibuki earlier, so maybe he’d taken the opportunity to move on. Him and Ibuki did match well, Hinata thought wistfully.

"Hinata, dude!" A voice yelled from behind him.

Souda was bouncing on his heels and waving his friend towards him.

"I looked all over the place, it’s nearly over!" Souda grabbed Hinata’s hand and ushered him back into the hall.

"W-Wait, what is?" He wouldn’t let his stupid Souda-fascination ruin anything else tonight, but he half-worried about his sweaty palms.

"Your favourite song! They’re playing it, and everyone’s dancing, you can’t miss it!"

Hinata slowly recognised the beat to an upbeat rock track he particularly enjoyed. Though he never remembered telling Souda it was his favourite, he appreciated that his best friend had come to find him. Confidence (plus alcohol) flowed into Hinata’s mind as he was whisked by the hand into the dance floor, watching Souda jerk around happily to the song, and before long, he joined in. They laughed and danced and met with Nanami, ending up in a heap of heavy breathing and laughter on the floor in the corner of the room.

"I don’t think I’ve ever danced so much through a 3 minute song," Hinata puffed.

"3 minutes?" Souda let out a snort, "Try half hour with Miss Punk Rock."

"I’ve been spiking Tsumiki’s drinks," Nanami said suddenly. They both paused to stare at the girl, then she burst into a fit of contagious giggles.

After the next few dance songs ended, it was approaching 9:30, and the slower songs were attracting couples to their feet. A headache had started bearing down on Hinata, so the softening lights were welcome.

"Hey Souda," he asked after consideration, "Have you ever danced properly before?"

"You saying that my sick moves weren’t proper dancing?" There was a very slight hint of slurring in Souda’s syllables.

"No, I mean," Hinata stood up in front of Souda, extending a hand towards him, "Proper dancing."

To his surprise, the pink boy took his hand firmly and stood up. “Nope.”

Hinata was getting flustered again, “N-Neither have I. I just…” Souda cut him off with a grin.

"First time for everything, right?"

Together, they stepped in time to the piano ballad neither of them recognised, and soon fell into a clumsy rhythm with both of them smirking down at their feet hand in hand.

"Put your hands on my shoulders," Hinata murmured so quietly without looking up, that Souda could’ve mistaken it for a sigh. But he’d heard what he said, and complied with ease. A few more steps later, Souda whispered back.

"Shouldn’t your hands be on my waist?"

Hinata glanced briefly at Souda’s face, taken aback. A giggle bubbled out of him when he noticed that his cheeks had gone pink to match his new hair and eyes. The boy froze momentarily at Hinata’s laugh, but melted back into a smile when he felt hands gripped gently on his waist.

The song came to a finish after eternity, and Hinata almost felt reluctant to let go of Souda. But the real world called, and people started to gather, so they released each other and went to find Nanami. As soon as she saw the boys’ state, she laugh aloud.

"Let’s get you two home, huh?" They began the walk to her car in silence, "Been a long night for all of us."

 

* * *

 

Souda was dropped off at his house first, waving his two best friends away with his hair and eyes still looking bright and attractive. At reaching Hinata’s road, Nanami turned to him beaming.

"You two," She said simply.

"Us two what?" Hinata said defensively. What could she be claiming? Did he even want to know? Not until morning at least, a throb in his brain told him.

"You dancing and stuff."

"Yeah, it’s prom, it’s what people do," He climbed out of the car and caught her still smirking through the window.

"Goodnight, Hajime."

He sighed, “Goodnight, Nanami.”

His parents asked him questions and wanted descriptions but Hinata wanted sleep. He brushed them off, promising to explain in the morning, then flopped on to bed without so much as taking his shoes off. Unconciousness started to claim him, but the buzz of his phone pulled him back momentarily.

>10:13pm “do u think i should keep the braid or no?”

Instead of replying, Hinata dozed off with a smile on his face and a pink-haired mechanic on his mind.

**Author's Note:**

> wow i love this ship. i probably shouldn't so much, but i do.
> 
> this is based on the british education system, if you were wonderin, and as a disclaimer, i've never been to a prom before in my life. please let me know of any spelling/grammar errors.
> 
> thank you<3


End file.
